Outdoor Pursuits
by Pemonynen
Summary: New Year's Shooting party 1921.  Mary needs warming up.  Random smuttiness that could totally happen.  Vaguest of the vague Christmas Special spoilers.


_Thought of this yesterday morning and just had to get it written down. Just a random bit of smuttiness that could totally happen. Erm…yeah. _

_Hope you like it!_

**Outdoor Pursuits**

She was cold, cold to her very core, despite all of the layers she was wearing. The sun was shining but it was not warm, and there was still some frost on the ground. She hadn't wanted to go out on the shoot, but equally she didn't want to spend time away from her husband when she didn't have to. It was bad enough that he worked all week. He had again refused a loader, and as they had wandered away from the rest of the party, it almost looked like he wasn't even really trying this year. She realised with a wry smile that he thought he had no need to impress her now.

Yet there was something about the way that his slender hands held the gun that had started to heat up her thoughts, amongst other things, and it started to remind her of how those same hands frequently held her, caressed her, explored her… Suddenly she wasn't so cold anymore. She wondered if they could slip away, just for a little while, just until it was time for lunch…

"Damn, missed it. Sorry darling," he lowered his gun, resting it over his arm, and turned to look at his wife, who looked startled as he broke her out of her reverie and met her gaze with a grin, part of him wondering why she suddenly looked a little guilty as a pink hue coloured her cheeks.

"I don't see why you agreed to come out again," she raised her eyebrows with a smirk, hoping to cover any trace of her embarrassment at her less than proper thoughts, and took a step towards him, keeping her eyes locked on his. "You don't like it and you're not good at it. Your words," she reminded him as he opened his mouth to protest.

"Your father cornered me into it…I couldn't have said no, and then it was too late to back out of it. You shouldn't have come out though; you should have just joined us for the food. What if something were to happen?" His eyes were suddenly full of concern.

She looked at him carefully before answering, stomach fluttering as he stepped closer to her, "as long as you keep that gun pointed away from me, nothing will happen. Besides, suspicion is not one of the things that I wanted to arouse today," her most primal needs had started to take over and cloud her thoughts, now if she could just get him on board… "I rather had something else in mind…" her voice was low and teasing, and her eyes kept flicking to his mouth. He swallowed thickly as her words sank in. It amused her a great deal that she could still reduce him to a nervous, bumbling shadow of himself. But what she had discovered that she liked, no loved, was that he had the same effect on her, and could easily turn the tables at any time. Which he often did. He moved closer, his face now just inches from hers. The air was thick and heavy between them, as it always became when she looked at him with parted lips and slightly hooded eyes that had somehow shifted to being almost black. Her intention was written all over her face. He grinned, feeling rather lightheaded as he moved towards his beautiful wife.

"Again, Mrs Crawley?" His free arm slid around her waist, pulling her towards him and trailing light kisses down her cheek to her neck. "Well, clearly I am not fulfilling my duties as a husband," her hands found their way to his chest, where she could just about feel his hammering heart through his clothes, and she tilted her head to allow him better access with his kisses. "I think that I should rectify that immediately, don't you?" She giggled as he muttered his last statement somewhere near her ear, before pulling back and smiling expectantly at her.

They had quickly learnt in the early weeks of their marriage that when the opportunity was presented, neither of them would refuse, however inconvenient it might be. In fact, quite often, they took every chance to work the other one up before walking away muttering a promise about _later_, leaving a frustrated spouse behind them. On several occasions, their insatiability had led them to being caught in various compromising positions by Isobel, Molesley, Mrs Hughes, Carson, Anna, Edith, and some of Matthew's colleagues at his office. Neither of them thought they would ever lose interest in their intimate activities. The others hoped they'd lose interest after the first few months, were wishing they would eventually, but if anything, as time went on, they only seemed to act even more like newly-weds: giggling and whispering together before one left the room and the other followed soon after. It was one thing in their own home, but it was really quite improper at the big house. Really though, no-one could mind too much; you only had to look at their permanent smiles to see how blissfully happy they were making each other.

She leaned forward, pressing herself against him as much as she was able to with the gun and their hats and coats between them, moulding her lips with his, heart pounding as he responded with a sigh and pulled her closer still, teasing open her mouth with his tongue, eliciting a soft moan. His arm moved from her waist and his hand came to rest on her stomach. Without breaking the kiss, one of her hands dropped to cover his, they both smiled as their lips met.

Getting pleasantly lost in what they were doing, her hand dropped from his and moved lower, brushing against the soft tweed of his trousers, against him. He was unable to stop the groan that left his throat and his eyes snapped open. Filling his vision was her face, mischief written all over it. Her hand didn't stop its careful attentions to him and he let out another involuntarily moan, eyes squeezing shut, before dragging his lips from hers and moving them nearer to her ear.

"Darling…I don't think…not here…" he whispered between ragged breaths, struggling to maintain coherency as he felt himself approach the brink of oblivion, blindly reaching out his free hand towards her to steady himself, the weight of the gun on his other arm almost forgotten. She didn't stop; she was enjoying what she was doing far too much.

"Mary…please…" but his protest was lost against the softness of her lips as she silenced him with a deep kiss.

Just then, luckily, or unluckily, depending on how you looked at it, one of the dogs came bounding round towards them, barking and sniffing around them. They sprang apart, realising that the rest of the party would not be far behind the animal. They took in each other's appearance-the dark eyes, swollen lips, red cheeks, and the heavy breathing. Desire coursed through them. They needed each other, and quickly.

"There's a keeper's hut, just through the trees," she whispered, unable to actually make her voice any louder in her amorous state, and he nodded as she grabbed his hand and started pulling him into the wooded area, just as they heard the voices and laughter of everyone else approach. It took far too long to find the shed; well that's how it seemed to Matthew anyway. She struggled with the door before he handed her his gun and stepped in to prise it open.

He had barely slid the bolt across to lock them in and she had barely placed the gun against the wall before they found each other, lips and hands clashing and pulling, tearing at coats and hats, eager to get closer to what they knew was beneath the layers. Matthew stopped suddenly and looked around their surroundings, wondering how and where exactly… His eyes settled on an old-looking stool. It would have to do. He kissed her again, reaching to unbutton her skirt, letting it fall to the floor, his hands skimming along her silk stockings and inner thighs to reach the heat that was waiting for him, giving a soft moan as he reached her centre. Her hands were occupied with his trousers, pushing them down as far as she could reach, freeing him, gasping as he distracted her with his fingers.

They staggered backwards, not breaking apart from their deep, searching kisses, until he stumbled into the stool and sat down, pulling her on top of him. He gripped her firmly and lifted her hips, both of them letting out a low groan as she sank down, encompassing him completely, revelling in the familiar sensations of each other, and the newness of the situation. Slowly, they started driving against each other, sighs and moans and gasps lost in their passionate kisses as their hands clung to each other. The stool wobbled unsteadily beneath them, but they didn't notice, and it wasn't going to stop them. Mary could feel the tension building up within her as Matthew moved his lips to her neck and grazed his teeth against the delicate skin, causing her to whimper. His hands were still holding onto her firmly as she rocked against him, her head rolling back with her eyes squeezed shut. Her own arms were locked around his neck, with her fingers tangling in his hair; almost tugging it out such was the strength of her desire. It didn't take long for them to reach the point of no return, before they shattered. Mary felt every single muscle tense up and then relax, causing waves of ecstasy to crash over her. A throaty groan alerted her to Matthew's release, seconds after her own.

They collapsed against each other, shuddering as little aftershocks of pleasure jolted through them, both of them satisfied and spent, foreheads resting together. Eventually their hearts slowed down and their breathing calmed enough for them to move. Mary pulled back and kissed Matthew's cheek softly. They smiled languidly at each other, and exchanged gentle kisses before their position became quite uncomfortable. Shakily he lifted her off him and stood, pulling up his trousers and straightening the rest of his clothes. She pulled her skirt on, reaching behind to fasten it before patting at her hair and replacing her hat and coat. He walked up behind her and wrapped his arms around her waist. She turned and wrapped hers around his neck, kissing him softly again.

"We should probably go and re-join the others before they send out a search party," she said eventually. Just then her stomach rumbled, and he chuckled at her as she flushed and flashed him an annoyed look.

"Yes and before baby makes you collapse from hunger!" His voice was full of affection, and he smiled, stooping to collect the gun, before wrapping his arm around her shoulder, holding her closely to him, and steering her out of the hut. He noticed her hand idly stroking her stomach as they strolled back to everyone else, and smiled.

"Shall we tell them today, do you think?"

"Yes. I think it's time. Though I hardly think it will be a surprise to some," she turned to look at him and arched an eyebrow, "given how much we've been doing _that_ since we got married," she smiled indulgently and he mirrored it, ignoring any sense of embarrassment they should have felt.

"Well, I think I should come out to shoot more often. Are there any other outdoor pursuits you think I should take part in? Other than _that_?" He grinned at her, eyes twinkling.

"Well there's always walking…plenty of places to get lost around the grounds. And I think in a few months, walking is just about all I'll be able to manage," she smiled back at him, and he pulled her closer, thinking that in a few months they probably wouldn't be able to do too much of _that_ unless it was in a bed. Enjoy it while you can, he thought to himself with a smile, as the rest of the party came into view, not having noticed their absence.


End file.
